Fish Out of Water
by Conifeather
Summary: Tigerstar's reign brings danger to many - Reedpaw, son of the now-disgraced half-clan warrior Mistyfoot, is one of them. So he runs to safety - but he doesn't realize that out there is nothing like clan life, and now he is like the fish flopping on shore, wanting home - but unable to return.
1. Run

**A/N: Hello! It is I, the one who has never finished a single fic but continues to crank out ideas.**

**I can't say for how long my enthusiasm for this fic will last, but I hope for a while. Don't be surprised if there's long periods between chapters, as real life comes first and my interest in investing time for this fluctuates.**

**Without further ado, however, I introduce to you the first chapter of Fish Out of Water!**

Chapter 1

When Tigerstar calls forth the prisoners, Blackclaw cranes his neck from the front of the RiverClan ring. The ShadowClan cats have completely blocked them from being near the prisoners, so that none of them can help even if they wanted to. Whoever it is standing in the center, they're shielding Featherpaw and Stormpaw from the probing gaze of many.

When it's Stonefur's voice that speaks, not Mistyfoot's, the black tom breathes a sigh of relief but then immediately berates himself for it. Stonefur is his family as much as everyone in RiverClan is.

When Stonefur falls to the claws of Darkstripe and Blackfoot (an unjust fight) amidst yowls and jeers of ShadowClan and the shocked silence of RiverClan, Blackclaw instinctively knows that he needs to find them, right now. As Featherpaw and Stormpaw are herded back to the hole, Blackclaw turns around and makes a dash for the reeds that mark the entrance of RiverClan camp.

If there's anyone in danger right now, it's definitely Pikepaw, Primrosepaw, and Reedpaw.

He scours the territory in panic, his heart racing, his throat constricting.

"Pikepaw!" he calls. "Primrosepaw! Reedpaw! Come here, right now!"

When none of them answer his calls, his heartbeat rises tenfold. He spins around in frantic circles in the riverbed territory that feels abruptly alien. He once passes a RiverClan patrol. They stare at him, jaws agape as he charges toward them. Shadepelt is about to ask him what in the name of _StarClan _he's doing when Blackclaw rushes past the gray she-cat.

His paws splash in the cool river and he spins around in a circle. Droplets splash in arcs as Blackclaw calls for his children.

"Pikepaw! Primrosepaw! Reedpaw!"

"Dah'!" Reedpaw's shocked mew stuns Blackclaw out of his stupor. His son is clutching a large fish in his jaws, eyes wider than his catch. "Wha' ah yo doin'?" he demands, the fish making each word more unpronounceable than the last.

"Oh, _thank _StarClan," the black warrior gasps out. There's no time for more sentiments. "Reedpaw, you need to leave. Now." When Reedpaw opens his jaws to ask (the fish plops down to the ground), Blackclaw adds more firmly: "No questions. There's no time. You have to run. Go to Twolegplace. Or ThunderClan. Not WindClan. Somewhere that's _safe, _you understand?"

Reedpaw blinks at the rapid succession of words. "Dad, what's going on?"

"You. Have. No. Time." Blackclaw spits out each word. "Run to Twolegplace - no one will find you there for a while. I'll send your brother and sister after you when I find them, understand?"

His son nods, eyes wide.

"Now _run!_"

Reedpaw shuts his jaws, grabs his catch, and dashes away along the shore. Blackclaw is thankful for once that his son is a studious listener.

He spends the rest of the sun-high daylight in search of his daughter and other son. He looks through everywhere he can think of - even surreptitiously crossing a couple borders to see if his children are there - but he comes up empty-pawed.

With a heavy heart he trudges back to camp, a minnow in his jaws to throw off suspicion.

"Really, Blackclaw? Only a minnow?" Loudbelly asks, shaking his head.

Blackclaw scowls at the brown tabby. "Well - that's none of your business, isn't it?"

Loudbelly chuckles for a moment, then turns abruptly serious. "Blackclaw, listen," the tom whispers. "Mistyfoot and the apprentices managed to escape."

Blackclaw lets the catch slip from his jaws. "What?"

Loudbelly nods grimly. "They're in ThunderClan, as far as we know," he meows. "The patrol that went after them came back fuming. And then Tigerstar… he demanded that ShadowClan capture..." his old friend hesitates. "I'm sorry, Blackclaw…"

Blackclaw's blood turns to ice, then fire when he hears the protesting cries of Primrosepaw and Pikepaw from where Stonefur last stood.

He doesn't pay heed to Loudbelly's call for him to wait. Blackclaw plunges through the outer ring of RiverClan and into the ring that's made up of ShadowClan. Filthy, swamp-smelling, led-by-murderer ShadowClan.

Blackfoot lunges for him as Blackclaw breaks the ring. Amidst yowls, frightened cries, and the snarl that comes from the ShadowClan deputy, the black smoke tom hears one low rumble.

"Blackfoot, stop."

Blackclaw looks up to see Tigerstar. The massive brown tabby looks down at the two cats - one pinned and paws outstretched, one pinning down and claws unsheathed.

"Would you care to explain yourself, Blackclaw?" Tigerstar hisses, setting one threatening forepaw on the Bonepile.

Blackclaw glares right back. "They are my kits," he snarls.

Tigerstar curls a lip. "_Your_ _kits?"_ he spits, fur bristling up on his shoulders. "These are the spawn of half-clan _filth._ Their loyalty is as split as their mother's. As their uncle's."

Primrosepaw gives a soft hiss, defying her shaking legs. "We - we are loyal to RiverClan!" she squeaks out.

Pikepaw nods from where he crouches beside his sister. A sharp snarl from Jaggedtooth silences them both.

"They grew up in RiverClan!" Blackclaw struggles against Blackfoot's grip. "They're _RiverClan!"_

There's a scattered murmur of assent from the outer RiverClan ring.

Tigerstar only curls his lip and ShadowClan titters in mocking laughter. RiverClan falls silent. Darkstripe inches forward, prompting Pikepaw to take a step back.

Blackfoot's claws start to dig in harder, piercing his skin. The black tom grits his teeth - Blackfoot puts more pressure on the open wounds. It feels as if thorns are curling around Blackclaw's shoulders. He growls, trying to shake the deputy off. Out of the corner of his eye he sees Pikepaw and Primrosepaw start to move forward, only to be blocked by Darkstripe and Jaggedtooth.

"Stay where you are!" Blackclaw hisses through gritted teeth.

"Half-clan cats and the _children _of half-clan filth will never be loyal to one clan!" Tigerstar's roar deafens his ears. "They were mistakes that should never have happened. A reminder of the treachery of their parents - a liability to the clans. And now - RiverClan will be cleansed."

Blackclaw twists his head just to see Tigerstar give a nod to the two toms. Jaggedtooth and Darkstripe begin advancing; Primrosepaw lets out a whimper in fear. Blackclaw twists and lashes out, kicking Blackfoot in the stomach and sending the ShadowClan cat reeling off. Lunging for the nearer tom, Blackclaw catches Darkstripe off guard - the gray tom gives a hiss as the RiverClan tom gouges at his eyes. And then he's being pulled back again - Blackclaw writhes, his eyes on Primrosepaw and Pikepaw. He hardly hears RiverClan cats yowling in protest as they try to press forward too - all he sees is his children, as they're pressed back to the Bonepile by Darkstripe and Jaggedtooth. A massive shadow briefly looms over all four of them. And then the tiger falls upon its prey.

Blackclaw's screams are nothing compared to Primrosepaw and Pikepaw's shrieks for help - for their mother, their father, for someone to _save them - _

Blackfoot's paws slam down on Blackclaw's muzzle. RiverClan cats jostle forward, a few paws bursting out between ShadowClan cats. The ShadowClan warriors turn on them, pushing back the struggling felines, baring teeth and lashing out with firm paws.

All over the clamor, Tigerstar's snarls and Pikepaw and Primrosepaw's wails are terrible.

Just as quickly it began, it's over. Two dull splatters of blood, one sharp crack of bone. Two limp bodies lie side-by-side in the circle of felines. Blackclaw stops struggling and now lies devoid of strength, his shoulders shaking. Blackfoot loosens his grip slowly, uncertain whether the warrior will abruptly turn on him again or not.

Tigerstar takes no heed to the black tom's grief. He turns to the crowd, a mix of horrified, solemn, delighted faces. "RiverClan has been cleansed," he growls. Then he turns his gaze to the golden tabby crouched behind the Bonepile. "And Leopardstar? You may want to ask yourself where your clanmates' loyalties lie."

Leopardstar looks up at him with narrowed eyes.

"My warriors are loyal to TigerClan," she meows clearly. Her posture straightens as she speaks to the large tabby. "You may want to ask your own warriors' loyalties, Tigerstar - aren't they the ones who let the prisoners escape?"

Jaggedtooth snarls. "They escaped because they _tricked_ us!"

Tigerstar merely gives a soft hiss in reply. His amber eyes swoop around the jumbled River-Shadow ring. "The weakness of half-clan is not yet completely gone," he growls. "You see one of them - kill them."


	2. Rest

**A/N: Bear in mind that I don't live in the U.S. nor do I live anywhere that even slightly resembles it. I may be completely wrong in my description of houses and fences.**

Chapter 2

Paws drum along the riverbed as Reedpaw shoots down the slope. His fish waggles in the wind, wedged tightly between his jaws. He doesn't even know why he's still carrying this - he should've given his father the pike when he ran.

Just as he thinks this, something snags the pike and rips it out of his jaws. Only the tang of fish flesh remains on his tongue but he takes no time to look for the missing catch. (Hopefully someone else would take it so that it wouldn't go to waste.)

He runs, trees and river and the ground is only a blur. He imagines Tigerstar chasing after him, hot on his heels. And just as he thinks that, he hears the faintest sounds of rumbling pawsteps and the black tom accelerates.

It's only when he realizes he's at the edge of the forest that he stops. Catching his breath, Reedpaw looks to the path he's run. Broken twigs and leaves amidst the thick undergrowth mark the place he's burst out of.

He hesitates. Should he go back a little? Go to ThunderClan? Maybe go to WindClan? He shakes his head. No. Neither would welcome him, most likely. Blackclaw said that he would send Prim and Pike anyway… and his father keeps his promises, right? They should be safe...

He should wait, Reedpaw concludes. Somewhere safe. He isn't sure, but he has a feeling - his father's order has got something to do with Tigerstar. He hopes his mother and uncle are safe - not to mention Featherpaw and Stormpaw. He shivers at the idea that his two friends be slaughtered at the paws of the great brown tabby.

A warning bird-cry shakes him from his stupor. He glances to his right, a clear line of stout white sticks marking the path he ought to walk. He shouldn't stay here. Tigerstar would be looking for him. Or worse, the entire of 'TigerClan'. Reedpaw imagines the snarling faces of his former clanmates. Out to kill him. A son of a half-clanner. It's enough to spur his weary paws into a trot down the rows of trees and Twoleg dens. Stumbling on tree roots (there's a lot more trees out here than in RiverClan territory, Reedpaw realizes), he makes his way at the border of Twolegplace and the forest. He looks to the Twoleg dens in silent awe as he walks - he's never seen anything like them.

_I wonder what it's like to live in there, _he thinks, gazing at the large things that surround the Thunderpath in the middle. _Probably trapped and enclosed… No wonder that leader of ThunderClan left to join the clans._

That musing leaves him fairly quickly - after all, he shouldn't be particularly interested in the life of a kittypet, and he isn't. The rest of his trekking is silent, except for the leaves rustling and some warbling birds.

As he rounds a particularly large oak tree, something catches his eye. He lowers himself into a crouch as he pads forward, looking right and left as he creeps forward.

It's a hollow log. Reedpaw frowns. He sniffs the air - he stiffens. There's cat scent.

Creeping closer, the tom peers into the log. It's empty. He sticks his head in farther. Still no signs of the former inhabitant. Or is it former? It's shelter, anyway. Slightly relieved, Reedpaw ducks his head out. Something bumps into the back of his head as he does so.

He spins around, fur bushed up, his mind racing of Tigerstar, enemy warriors, and cats who want to kill him because of his bloodline -

It's a kittypet collar.

Reedpaw deflates - partially from relief, partially from embarrassment. He knows what Primrosepaw would have said: "Scared of a _collar? _What are you going to do when you're near Twolegplace? Run when a kittypet comes near you?" And then she'd burst into peals of laughter.

_Thank StarClan she's not here,_ Reedpaw thinks. But now he pokes at the swinging collar with his nose - obviously some former kittypet had been there previously. Had they left, though? Hopefully they had, because Reedpaw is pretty sure sleeping out in the open in the middle of the night makes him vulnerable to all sorts of things. Also, his paws can use a break.

He dips his head into the log. His fur's growing out in larger clumps now, since it's going to be leaf-bare soon, and it's a bit of a squeeze to fit himself inside. Thankfully the inside of the log is wider than its entrance. He collapses into the moss bed with a sign - wait, moss bed?

The black tom sits up, abruptly at attention. A moss bed that was still intact? He lowers his head to probe at the moss a little - it's far too fresh-smelling to ease his mood. Someone will definitely be returning here.

Reedpaw kneads at the moss bed, apprehensive. He can't just move out - he needs to stay here - he doesn't have anywhere else to go. So what _can _he do?

_Fight for it, _a voice says in his mind. _It's only a kittypet anyway._

_But what if it's a lost and hungry one? _he argues. _They could starve to death because of me._

_What are you going to do, then? Go to WindClan? Where Tigerstar said TigerClan would be attacking soon? Go to ThunderClan, where the leader has said that TigerClan is their enemy?_

He snarls. His claws tear at the moss. This is so _stupid! _If Crookedstar was alive, he wouldn't have agreed to this alliance, he wouldn't have let his mom and uncle be prisoners, he wouldn't have imprisoned Stormpaw and Featherpaw, and he wouldn't have been forced to run!

A rustle snaps Reedpaw back to his senses. Someone's padding closer, dragging something as they do.

"Hallooo?" the cat calls out, voice muffled by something. "Satha?"

Reedpaw holds his breath. There's a sound of a dull thud. Whatever was in the cat's mouth is on the ground. Reedpaw lowers his head to see outside and there's a finch. His stomach gives a growl as the scent of food reaches his nose.

"Sasha?" The cat peers inside nearly at the same time. "Are you back?"

Reedpaw flinches back at the same time the black and white tom lets out a hiss of surprise. It's now or never. Reedpaw forces his way out of the log, his fur bristled up.

"You- you're not Sasha," the tom stammers. He takes a few steps back, back arched. "What are you doing here?"

"I don't even know who Sasha is." Reedpaw tries for a growl but all that comes out is a groaning series of words. He ends with a despondent sigh. "I needed a place to stay."

The tom takes a step forward. "Well, this is Sasha's den. I'm guarding it. So skedaddle along, youngster."

"Can't you let me stay?" he asks. "I'm tired. I've been walking around for too long." He looks at the sky - sun-high is history. Various shades of purple and blue dot the sky, red streaks marking the direction where the sun is going down.

"Can't do it," the tom snaps. "This log is her den and no one else's taking it."

"Just for a little while?" he wheedles. "I really need a break. I'll leave at dusk."

The other cat scowls. "And why should I believe you?"

Reedpaw almost screams in indignation. He's not some random rogue, for StarClan's sake! He's a _warrior apprentice,_ and he's not going to lie when he's about to drop from exhaustion!

He resists the urge to unsheathe his claws as he spits out, "What's a tired cat going to do, fight?"

The tom considers this for a short while, head tipped to one side. "Well, fine," he relents. "But you'll have to leave at dusk, you hear?"

"Thank you," Reedpaw sighs. His fur falls back down on his spine. "Thank you... uh, what's your name?"

The tom flicks an ear. "Pine," he says shortly. "And you are?"

_Uh. _Reedpaw hasn't exactly thought of that. "Reedpaw" is working up in his throat when he stops himself. This isn't a clan cat. Revealing his entire name would be dangerous. Rogues have generally had a bad history with the clans, after all. Even though Pine is friendly, Reedpaw doubts Pine would take kindly to housing a clan cat in his (Sasha's?) log.

So: "Reed," he answers.

"You're a little new around here, aren't you, Reed?" Pine mutters as Reedpaw returns to the soft moss nest. The black apprentice hears Pine grumbling lowly outside - as he pads away. He wasn't expecting this, Reedpaw guesses. Never mind that. He's going to get some rest while he can.

Reedpaw drapes his tail over his nose and closes his eyes.

It's only a few heartbeats, or at least he thinks so, when he feels a prod on his side. He opens one eye and removes his tail from his nose bridge.

"Time to go," Pine whispers. His mew is ragged with fatigue.

Reedpaw struggles to his paws. He bonks his head against the log as he comes out.

"Well, skedaddle now," the black and white tom mews, scrawny form outlined blue in the dusk. "You heading anywhere specific?"

Reedpaw shakes his head no. Reality hits him on the back of the head and the place where he bumped against the log throbs. StarClan. Where was he supposed to go? Not back to the clans. Not now.

"Or you waiting for someone?"

Reedpaw blinks, then nods. Primrosepaw and Pikepaw. Did they escape? They must have by now.

Pine twitches an ear. "Well. What are their names?"

Reedpaw stares at the loner. "What?"

Pine rolls his eyes. "I'm going to have to know a name if I tell them I saw you."

"O-oh." Reedpaw hesitates. "Their names are Primrose and Pike - they're my littermates, and well…" He pauses. "I thought they'd be here by now. Or somewhere near."

Pine flicks his tail against Reedpaw's ear. "You really got nowhere to stay, huh?" He jerks his head towards the Twoleg dens. "If you walk down those fences right there -"

"Fence?"

"...You don't know what a fence is?"

Reedpaw feels himself burning under his coat. "No."

"Well… It's those white things you see right there - sticks forming a straight line -" Pine indicates with his tail - "- and if you walk down that way -" Pine angles his head right - "- chances are, you'll run into Princess."

"...Princess?"

"Nice housecat. Real sweetheart. She might offer you her place to stay a night or two."

"Housecat? You mean..." _kittypet _was on the tip of his tongue when Reedpaw swallows and says, "Are you telling me to sleep in a Twoleg den?"

It's Pine's turn to blink. "What, you don't want a place to stay a little?"

"I mean… I do, but..."

_A warrior rejects the soft life of a kittypet._

"It's kind of… weird for me. I've never been inside any of those."

"Get used to it. Bunch of us drop into houses now and then. If you gonna live in this place, you gotta know where to ask for shelter." Pine considers. "Couple more might be willing, but they're way too far. You'd probably drop before you reach either of 'em."

"Pine, that's not comforting."

"It wasn't meant for comfort, lad. Better get going, eh?" The tom twitches his whiskers, wry humor written on his face. "Those forest clans aren't exactly nice to other cats on their territory."

Reedpaw bites his tongue and nods. It certainly is easy to overlook how other cats view his former home.

"Better run quick on the streets, too," Pine adds. "BloodClan doesn't take too kindly to wanderers on the street this early either."

Reedpaw pricks his ears. "_Blood_Clan?"

Pine stares at him. "You're _really_ not familiar with anything here."

Reedpaw flattens his ears. "But um. _Blood_Clan?"

"BloodClan," Pine affirms. "Couple of 'em brutes gave me this scratch down the side when they caught me scavengin' in one of 'em garbage stumps."

Reedpaw peers at the tom's side scars in the pale blue light. The furless parts are stark against the white fur, even in the gloom. The black apprentice winces, imagining how painful that must've been at first - the gouges are still fairly raw and tender. He shivers.

"Quick walking," he mumbles. "Right."

"Princess is brown and white with tabby spots," Pine advises. "Be on the lookout, Reed."

Reedpaw tips his head. "Can't you come with me?" he asks.

Pine shakes his head. "Sorry, lad - I have my own business to go take care of," he says regretfully. "BloodClan existing and all that - I hafta catch something before they come to me."

Reedpaw dips his head, although he doesn't get what Pine even means. What does BloodClan have anything to do with catching something? "Thank you," he meows.

"Ah, no need to thank me," Pine snorts. "Check with Princess, and when you take a break there, go to an abandoned shed at the end of town - I have a friend there, called Shadow. She might let you in if you mention my name, eh?"

Reedpaw dips his head. Pine nods back, and Reedpaw turns to move along the… fence again. He still feels a little drowsy - it's still dark, too.

Hopefully Pikepaw and Primrosepaw would meet Pine, he thinks, and Pine would send them in the same direction. Prim would take all of this as a big adventure, Reedpaw figures with a purr, and Pike would be their voice of reason. He can imagine it. Reedpaw closes his eyes and stumbles alongside the fences.

"_Come on, fish-brains!" Primrosepaw shouts as she bounds on up ahead._

_Loudbelly chuckles, keeping an eye on his pale brown apprentice as he leans over to whisper to his sister, Sedgecreek._

_Reedpaw follows not too far behind, hot on his own sister's heels. He can barely hear his own mentor, Frogleap, shouts at them both to _please stop and come back, they're training, not learning how to scare all the fish away._ Pikepaw trails behind, with his mentor, Grasswhisker, by his side. Dawnpaw is there too, her gray fur sleek in the sun-high light, laughing at them as they go. Her mentor isn't there, but Heavystep's former mentor - and Reedpaw's father - Blackclaw is, so that's all fine. Reedpaw doesn't look back, but he can tell his father his purring with amusement from the rear of the patrol._

_And Primrosepaw is off towards the newly-reclaimed Sunningrocks, bounding from stone to stone, leaving small clawmarks where she leaps. And Reedpaw follows an alternate path, opting to head for a path that goes straight up rather than sloping. He leaps for the top of the rocks - he can hear Primrosepaw yelling at him that he's a cheater -_

"Ow!"

Reedpaw crashes paws-first into a nearby oak. He shakes his head, disoriented, and looks back. Apparently he had been walking in a zig-zag pattern - there are crushed leaves littered everywhere.

There's a giggle from above. Reedpaw instinctively looks up. Blinks. There's a cat silhouette on the fence - smaller than the average WindClanner he'd seen but plumper than the moor-runners. _Way _plumper. Reedpaw's lips curl immediately. _Kittypet._

"Some idiot you are!" he meows. "Where ya coming from, prancing around like that?"

"None of your business," Reedpaw snaps, growing hot beneath his fur.

"And -" The kittypet leaps down from his perch. He's way smaller than Reedpaw is, but he sounds a lot older. With white fur and a rather goofy face that reminds the black apprentice of a squirrel, the kittypet is obviously not the biggest threat Reedpaw's faced in his life.

_I could easily pin him in battle,_ Reedpaw thinks, contempt drawing his mouth back in a sneer.

"You don't have a collar!" the kittypet pronounces like it's the most interesting thing in the world.

"Congrats," Reedpaw says dryly. "Your observation skills are on point."

"I know!" the kittypet grins back at him. "Lemme guess, you're one of Princess' wildcat friends, aren't you?"

The name catches his attention. "Yeah, yeah. By the way, can you tell me where Princess lives?"

"Princess?" the kittypet tips his head back towards where Reedpaw came a-crashing from. "She lives two houses over, that way!" The white tom bounces on his paws. "I'm Wilbur!"

"Reed." Reedpaw says shortly as he turns around and leaves.

"Reed?!" He hears Wilbur shout. "But that's not a wildcat name!"

"Nooo," Reedpaw mutters, patience running thin.

Wilbur doesn't take the hint and runs after him. "But if you're not a wildcat, what are you?" he asks.

_A warrior, _Reedpaw bites back, _a good one at that, too._ But he isn't, not really. He doesn't have his full name yet and he doesn't know if he will now, and he wonders if Leopardstar would give him his full name even though his mother is half-clan. _Which isn't her fault. Dumb Leopardstar for believing that Mom doesn't make a good warrior because of her bloodline. She's the best there is. That's what Dad said._

Aloud, he hisses: "Save your breath, I can eat you if you get any louder!" There's a yelp and some skittering and scrabbling, and Wilbur is (probably) gone. Reedpaw snorts. Kittypets. What a bunch of softies. He expects Princess to be one as well. Although… maybe if she _did _have friends in the clans, maybe she won't be as much of an idiot as Wilbur was. Reedpaw decides to hold onto that hope and pads on.

Reedpaw stops in at the back of a small Twoleg den, encircled by a swath of white wooden sticks. He bunches his muscles and jumps for the top of the fence, latching his claws onto it and scrabbling the rest of the way up.

He pokes his head over the edge, balancing and wobbling on the top of the white sticks. The ground that the fence surrounds is all grass. No trees, just grass. And some bowls with kittypet kibble. Blech.

Reedpaw drops down. The stench of Twoleg is overwhelming, as is the scent of cat. Maybe Princess stayed out a lot? Reedpaw frowns. Also, a kittypet that has "wildcat friends?" That's just straight-up not possible. Why would any clan cat befriend a kittypet?

"Firestar? Cloudtail?"

Reedpaw jumps. A white and brown tabby pads into view, green eyes bright - until she sees him. She freezes. So does Reedpaw.

"Who-?" Princess says first. Her voice is high pitched and her fear scent wafts over Reedpaw.

"I'm Reedpaw," he offers.

"You're a Clan cat," Princess says, not relaxing at all.

"I'm not here to attack or anything," Reedpaw assures. "I just - need a place to stay for a bit."

"A place to stay," Princess repeats, uncertain. "You're… alone? I thought you clans were all a big family."

Reedpaw bites back a barbed retort. _Thanks a lot, Pine,_ he thinks. "Things are… complicated right now," he explains. "My father sent me away so that I could be safe."

Princess seems to lower her guard a little, padding forward and sniffing at him. "Complicated?" The worry is evident. "Are Firestar and Cloudtail alright?"

"Firestar and…?" Reedpaw recalls the russet-pelted ThunderClan leader and… he's pretty sure Cloudtail was that large white warrior. He remembers giggling about how he'd obviously be seen in the woods with Dawnpaw. "I think so?"

"You're so thin," Princess mews pityingly, looking at his side. Reedpaw abruptly feels self-conscious about his ribs. They aren't as prominent as they'd be in leaf-bare, but compared to Princess' plump look, he probably looks like he's been starved for a couple moons. "Come in!" The she-cat turns, flicking her tail. "I'll give you some of my food."

'Food', Reedpaw guesses, is kittypet pellets. He follows anyway - he'll be leaving when the sun's up in full.


End file.
